SPAIN: Ana Botella looked worried as her car drew up on a campaign visit to a Madrid suburb last week. As she got out she looked around and asked one of her aides: "Is it safe?" Once reassured that the coast was clear she switched into electioneering mode, smiling and pressing the flesh as expected of a municipal election candidate.
Mrs Botella, wife of Spain's Prime Minister, Mr Jose Maria Aznar, had reason to be concerned about her reception. On earlier visits around the Spanish capital she had been insulted and heckled by pacifists and groups of students angry at her husband's decision to support the Bush-Blair Iraq alliance, and by gay and lesbian militants over her own conservative opinions on homosexual rights. Mr Aznar insists he will not be standing for a third term in next year's general elections, and as his leadership career draws to a close, his 49-year-old wife has stepped into the political arena.
She was not tempted by the example of Carmen Romero, wife of former socialist prime minister Felipe Gonzalez who became a member of the Spanish Congress, and in spite of the nickname "La Hilaria" Mrs Botella has not followed the path of former US First Lady, Hilary Rodham Clinton, to the senate. Her aims are less ambitious, and for her first steps into active politics, "La Botella", which means bottle in Spanish, chose the number three slot on the Popular Party (PP) ticket for Madrid City Council, with responsibility for social affairs.
Although inexperienced, she is a political animal - many say she persuaded Mr Aznar to run for office in 1993 - and has been one of his closest advisers throughout their 28-year marriage. Her friendly extroverted manner, in contrast to her husband's lack of charisma, has made her one of his most valuable assets. On a recent visit to a homeless men's shelter, she hugged one man with delight when he remarked: "You look much better in person than you do in photographs!"
She qualified as a lawyer in 1975, the year of their marriage. The family bread winner until her husband passed his civil service exams and became a tax inspector, she later became a full-time mother to their three children, and supporter of her husband's political career. Now, after two of their children have flown the nest and the youngest is ready to do so, she feels free to follow her own path.
Although she describes herself as a "bad Catholic", her politics are conservative. She opposes abortion and gay adoption, and says she believes that marital and domestic violence should be sorted out within the home rather than in the courts. Last year she was criticised for defending a PP politician accused of sexual harassment, saying he had behaved "impeccably" by offering his resignation.
Her campaigning has been more low-key than many of the other candidates, but questions are already being asked about what will happen when she is no longer tied by her husband's position. To date "La Botella" refuses to commit herself beyond saying she will remain loyal to her party.